Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa has been acclaimed as the best known, the most visited, the most written about, the most sung about, and the most parodied work of art in the world (via Wikipedia).

The world was a more simple place when I first visited her in the mid-70s.  I don’t recall having to punch my way through massive crowds to get a glimpse of her famous smile.

Today, as you can see in my photograph below, when you visit Mona Lisa, you’re going to be fighting through a crowd of 200 of your closest international friends. 🙂

As you elbow your way through the crowd, one comment you’re going to hear over and over is that “the painting is much smaller than I expected”.  And, to the chagrin of travel photographers, she’s tucked away behind bulletproof glass making a glare-free photograph darn near impossible.

Further, as you can see, you’re also going to be enjoying a fair amount of pushing and shoving as you encounter all of the smartphones hovering over the heads of the crowd jockeying for just the right angle for their photograph.  It’s quite an experience, indeed!

First time travelers to Europe’s most visited destinations have little comprehension about the crowds they are going to face during the busy times of the year.  We’ve been there and done that, and frankly, don’t like the crowds a bit.

If you’d like a more civilized experience, away from the maddening crowds, we’ll help you plan a “behind the velvet rope” experience that will keep you away from the crowds, and perhaps more importantly, the pickpockets. It’s just one of the many things we do for our clients.

Thinking about a trip to Paris?  We’d love to help!  Call us at (480) 550-1235, or use our convenient online information request by clicking here.
 
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